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The Best of the Day: January 7th, 2021
See the best of the day in sports from January 7, 2021 including NYM landing Francisco Lindor in a blockbuster deal, Luka in MVP form, & more!
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The ‘Best of the Day’ is a daily PSO original series showcasing the most significant stories, highlights, and facts going on in the land of the NFL, NBA, & MLB every day. Get a recap on EVERYTHING that happened on 1/7 here.
The biggest sports update came from the MLB, where the New York Mets acquired Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco from Cleveland in a blockbuster trade. In return, Cleveland received four of New York’s top young players, including two infielders who have already made an impact at the MLB level. After a slow start to open the season, Luka Doncic finally showed why he was a preseason MVP favorite with his near triple-double in Dallas’ OT victory over Denver. Sports on 1/7 also featured a look back on the incredible 2020 NFL season with the most interesting facts to know.
Here is the best of the day from January 7, 2021:
Mets landed SS Francisco Lindor in a blockbuster trade with Cleveland
New Mets owner Steve Cohen made a promise of a new age in New York, full of spending and being among the most aggressive teams in acquiring top end talent to build a consistent winner. He delivered with his biggest move yet, landing 4x All-Star SS Francisco Lindor from Cleveland in a blockbuster deal on Thursday involving six players. Also heading to New York is SP Carlos Carrasco, while Cleveland received INF’s Andres Gimenez and Amed Rosario, RHP Josh Wolf, and OF Isaiah Greene.
Lindor, 27, is a 4x All-Star, 2x Gold Glover, and a 2x Silver Slugger. He spent his first six seasons in Cleveland and was a major contributor on the team that came within one run of winning the World Series in 2016. For his career, Lindor has slashed .285/.346/.488 with 138 HRs and 411 RBIs. He is coming off a down season in 2020 where he hit just .258 with eight home runs in 60 games, but, from 2017-19, Lindor averaged 34 home runs and a .278 batting average. Lindor, one of the most talented and marketable players in baseball, increases the Mets offensive ceiling and significantly improves their defense up the middle.
Carrasco, 33, is coming off an excellent season in which he posted a 2.91 ERA in 12 starts. He earned the AL Comeback Player of the Year after returning from a life-threatening chronic myeloid leukemia diagnosis. In his 11 MLB seasons, all with Cleveland, Carrasco has a 3.77 ERA, with his best season coming in 2017 when he finished fourth in the AL Cy Young Award voting. He will add another proven starter to the top of an already solid rotation that includes Jacob deGrom and Marcus Stroman.
The deal comes at a cost though for New York, who sent Cleveland two of their highest-regarded young played that they have developed over the last decade in Rosario and Gimenez. Gimenez was one of the top prospects in all of baseball for both his glove and hit tools. Wolf and Green are excellent prospects as well, rated as NYM’s No. 9 and 10 prospects, respectively. It remains to be seen which team will get the better end of this trade, but no one can argue that the Mets are likely the most improved team in the majors with their offseason additions outside of the Padres.
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"Night in, night out. Day in, day out."
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) January 7, 2021
Thank you for the memories, Francisco. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/r16OzZCsDh
Welcome to New York! 🍎
— New York Mets (@Mets) January 7, 2021
We’ve acquired Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco. #LGMhttps://t.co/Bc0fICHUKn
Related: Stories of the Day
After a slow start, Luka Doncic is back as the MVP favorite, and the Mavs playoff chances rely on it
Luka Doncic is playing in his third NBA season at 21 years old. He burst onto the scene and grabbed the Rookie of the Year award in his first season, and took a huge leap last season, finishing third for the Most Improved Player award and fourth in MVP voting. Luka entered this season as the favorite to win the MVP, and finally proved why on Thursday, in a 124-117 OT victory over the Nuggets.
Luka did it all on national TV in an OT thriller, scoring 38 points, racking up 13 assists, and bringing down nine boards. He assisted the go-ahead three-pointer in regulation and scored nine of the Mavs’ 15 points in the extra period, leading them to victory in a game that was as important as any early regular season game could be. The Mavericks would’ve dropped to 3-5 with a loss, but they instead sit at 4-4, they grabbed a huge win over a Western Conference contender, and they got some momentum going into their next couple games where they hope to get All-Star Kristaps Porzingis back from injury.
CLUTCH. 38/13/9 for LUKAAAA pic.twitter.com/Tl0DjrlvLA
— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) January 8, 2021
Luka Doncic scored or assisted on 29 of the Mavericks last 38 points of the game (76%), beginning with his assist at the 7:38 mark of the 4th quarter.
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) January 8, 2021
The Nuggets scored 29 points as a team during that span. pic.twitter.com/t2MAeJfYFr
Related: NBA Takeaways of the Day
Kleber & Jokic came up clutch in an OT thriller
Nikola Jokic buries the stepback jumper to force overtime on TNT.@dallasmavs 109@nuggets 109 pic.twitter.com/gIFUqI66pL
— NBA (@NBA) January 8, 2021
Related: NBA Highlights | Dallas Mavericks Highlights
G Luka Doncic, DAL (@DEN): 38 PTS (13-22 FG | 2-7 3PT), 13 AST, 9 REB, 1 BLK, 4 STL, 8 TO
#PlayerOfTheDay (1/7/21) - G Luka Doncic, DAL
— Pro Sports Outlook (@PSO_Sports) January 8, 2021
THE FACTS:
- Leads Mavs in PTS (27.8), AST (8.0), & REB (9.0)
- Scored 9 of his 38 PTS in OT to lead victory over DEN
- Tied career-high in STLs (4) in a game
- Dallas now has a 4-4 record without Kristaps https://t.co/gSiVvZDZpE
Related: Players of the Day
Dallas Mavericks (124) vs. Denver Nuggets (117) [OT]
MAVERICKS (+138; $9.78) d. @NUGGETS (-138; $8.84) 124-117 (OT) [DAL +3 | o223]
Related: Games of the Day
Related: Facts of the Day
20 Most Interesting Facts From the 2020 NFL Season by Arslan Ubul
The 2020 NFL season was a year unlike any other due to COVID-19, but that didn’t stop records from shattering and new stars from emerging
From an epic MVP race to records being broken at a historic rate, check out all the most interesting facts to know about an unprecedented 2020 NFL season ⬇️https://t.co/bYRvVYwNGZ pic.twitter.com/0O8vsaEjXu
— Pro Sports Outlook (@PSO_Sports) January 8, 2021
Related: Latest PSO Posts
FULL ARTICLE: Most Significant Sports History on January 7th
33 days: The 1971-72 Lakers won a record 33 in a row. The Warriors have come closest: 28 in a row spanning 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons. #NBA pic.twitter.com/6a5tcdTKxI
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) September 22, 2016
YEAR: 1972
SIGNIFICANCE: Los Angeles Lakers extended their NBA record by winning their 33rd consecutive game
Related: Significant Sports History
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